


Grindeldore Hunger Games AU

by Anonymous



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Hunger Games Setting, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-17
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:29:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27061954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: At 17, Albus had his plans sorted out: survive the reaping, take the Immigration Exam, find a job among the richer districts and find a doctor who could cure Ariana.But when Ariana’s name is called in the Reaping and his hot-tempered brother looks a moment away from doing something which will likely end in his death Albus makes the impulsive choice to take his sister’s place.
Relationships: Albus Dumbledore/Gellert Grindelwald
Comments: 5
Kudos: 24
Collections: Anonymous





	1. Hunger Games Au

**Hunger Games AU**

++++

The Reaping was open to teenagers and kids between the age of 11 and 18.

Albus was nearing his 18th birthday by the end of summer. Just this year left and then he'd be free from ever being chosen as a contestant for the Hunger Games. 

Albus was a skilled herbalist while his brother, Abe, worked in the coal mines. Between the both of them they manage to raise enough for Ariana's potions. The ingredients they couldn't buy either because the price was beyond their means or its availability was not in this impoverished town.

Ariana had gifted hands for knitting and with the leftover wools they could not make into whole clothing item for customers they manage to collect enough scraps of it to to make a mismatched pair of socks for the siblings. Albus' was canary yellow with stray green wool that looked like splotches but they were the comfiest pair he had.

The siblings were orphans and had to fend for themselves because their own father died a criminal and not long ago their mother died. 

"Brother look! Abe gave me a basket of wool Reckon there'd be enough here to make gloves for the autumn?" Abe had a pet goat and sheep ,brought from years of his coalmining savings. His brother's passion were in animals and the goat gave them milk and the sheep wool. 

The current yarns made from the wool were pitiful in the basket, the good qualities ones already having been sold and the sales of which barely enough to cover Ariana's potions and the siblings' sustenance. Not the bountiful stocks Ariana made them out to be, Albus estimated there would be enough for just a pair of very short ankle socks, but Albus let out a smile and patted her head. 

The potions were almost done, simmered for the better of a month. Albus took the silver stirring stick their mother always used back then and stirred the mixture together. Mother had always been particular on the direction she stirred after each ingredient and Albus had taken to them just as much as he'd still taken to use her items as they never tarnished even till now. 

Medicine was scarce their district and Kendra was talented in it. People from surrounding districts used to go to the Dumbledore's cottage have their mother and now Albus to make medicines for them for which they'd repay with potions ingredients, food or the few coins. Bartering was the major currency among the outer districts and with each richer districts they turn to coins or even paper notes as what Albus discovered through travellers and books although he'd never seen these promissory notes which had faces. 

Albus planned to leave his district. He always dreamt of leaving the district even back when mother had still been alive and Ariana's illness was not still that serious. He felt cooped up in this place but more so after Ariana's illness took a turn for the worst and he needed to find a doctor as no one here knew what was ailing her. 

The travellers from their nearby district who had passed the immigration exams for Albus' district made him hope which he latched to for years even when no one from their district has ever went beyond these walls and came back except for the Tributes and the latter often which in barrels. The law to stop people from living their district was in the Capital's words to safeguard the citizens from the bandits or criminals who escaped their district and now became lawless men targetting anyone. 

Even with the scare tactics and the difficulty of the exam Dumbledore still wanted to leave his district. He knew he potential was limited in this district and wanted to leave maybe for a district where he could find status and maybe alleviate his sibling's conditions. Aberforth often accused him of wanting to leave and forget his last talented siblings. He could make a better name for himself in the capital if he didn't have deadweight siblings to support. 

But immigration was disallowed below the age of of majority, so that citizens can't escape their town's reaping. And once they've come to age the citizens from the lower class citizens had to pass an examination which allows them to enter the next tiered district.

If would take a while, but Albus was confident with his intelligence he could work in the second or even first district or at the least settle comfortably in the 5th or 6th district which was where the healers were. And once there, he could find a job which could support his family and find a healer who could find what was wrong with Ariana. Albus knew the potions were only a temporary stop-gap measure for whatever had afflicted her which caused their father to become wild he went to jail. He had refused to tell anyone in the family for what had happened to her and any attempts to get the truth out of Ariana were met with resistance and so they had given up.

**The Reaping**

A horn blew in the background, loud enough that even Albus, whose home was near the outskirts of the village could hear it loud and clear.

Ariana stilled and stopped her knitting, her hands shaking. 

Such power a horn can bring, though Albus. It could make even the bravest of us stand still like a deer caught or shake with fear.

Ariana put down the crochet.

Aberforth was annoyed but sounded fearful.

He said gruffly, " Guess we better go there."

Arianna didn't budge from her seats.

"Ariana, you can finish your knitting after the.. reaping."

"There are two hundred other children aside from us," Albus said to calm both himself and his sister. "So that's a 1.5% chance one of us will be called."

"But that's still higher than one," Ariana was not comforted 

Albus frowned. Arianna had went docile although fearful last year without any sounds. But second years into the Reaping always brought out the worst of the nerves and it rarely gets better. 

But it still means there's a 98.5% chance neither of our names would be called. The odds/probability is still in our fever. Albus said in a soothing voice he usually used when he needed to calm Ariana down after her episodes.

"You and your numbers won't calm anyone down," Aberforth rolled his eyes.

"Arianna, come. If you do so obediently I promise the next batch of wool goes to you. It looks to be it'll be half a foot size. "

"But what of the customer?" 

"She'll have to make do without an extra bonnet. As if she need any more to cover up her crow's nest of a hair." 

"Okay," murmured Arianna. She secured the needles into the fuzzy yarn so the sharp ends won't jut and got down from her chair and they went together after making sure they were presentable. 

When Albus reached the town center he saw Elphias who looked anxious and visibly perked when he saw the siblings although the worry in his eyes never left. 

"Our last year, Al," Elphias said in a grim mood which didn't match his everyday self.

Albus nodded.

"Our last year. Just one more reaping and we'll be free of this horrible game forever."

"I'll join you when you take the exam. My birthday's just a month earlier than yours. Than we can go on our trip as we planned," Elphias said with optimism. 

"You'd think my parents would have the greater sense to have me a month earlier so I could escape this."

"But it means you'd suffer being a nervous wreck earlier." 

"Blimey. Then I wouldn't have you to spend that dreaded day together." They had been steadfast friends since. Sharing a common plight would bring camaraderie from all sorts. 

"We'll see you later Ariana," they said while the girls were herded to the other side. Ever since a Tribute tried to kill themselves in the past rather than participate in the games the Capital had sent guards and made sure all the children of participating age lined up between them. 

Ariana looked hesitant in leaving but she was pushed by a guard and herded with the other girls. They were then lined up from the youngest to the eldest. The younger ones couldn't even stay with their parents and it took a psychological toll as some were sniffing but many who were elder have grown past crying or should have so they won't be berated as cowards. 

He and Elphias and the other 11 to 17 year old boys were at the rear line near the sentry. This was their last chance to enter the Hunger Games and there were many palpitations as the boys waited and tension could be seen from their narrow brows and pale faces. and tense body language. 

The younger children were scared and continued to cry while the ones who didn't were numbed by shock and denial. 

Eleven is too young, Albus thought sadly. Many of the past contestants and audience had thought so and even the more compassionate contestants took out the younger early on in the game to 'save them from the horrors of fighting in a death match'. This was a common reason aside from the younger children being easier to kill. The sincerity varied between contestants, no, killers. That's what they all were, everyone who joined and were in it to win. What the games had made them to be.

"I will be walking towards the name picked and whoever I stop in front at is the person who will be your contestant," the announcer said. This way was more cruel, Albus thought than just outright calling a name. Instead of calling the name right away they were prolonging the fear. It hadn't always been this way but some changed were made in the past years by the Committee. 

The person didn't stop at him and passed Albus by. Albus breathed out for a sigh of relief when the contestants were chosen and he hadn't been picked.

_Just one more day, one more day then I can put the Reaping behind me and come this August I'd be able to leave this town._

He breathed another sigh of relief when his friend, Elphias Doge hadn't been called.

Aberforth, (three years younger than him, three more years to go) was passed by and Albus released his worry. Maybe they could all come out of this unchosen. 

The woman went over to the girls group and the girls became scared although the higher years held their composure better but there was such tension in the group, more than when the woman was among the boys group since it was certain the named called wouldn't be a boys. This year, the contestant would be a girl then. Many horrors were visited upon the girls who can't defend themselves.

Then the announcer stopped right in front of Ariana. 

Ariana, poor Ariana, was close to fainting. She was pale as a sheet of proper bleached wool and did not even have enough time to express relief that it weren't her brothers when the woman stopped in front of her. 

The other citizens could only hope that she'll be taken out early, and painlessly.

Albus looked at his brother in reaction to their shared horror but when he turned the horror had faded from Aberforth's face replaced with grim determination and with clarity he immediately understood what Aberforth was going to do and he couldn't have it. 

Before Aberforth can gather the courage to raise his hand fully - he knows he won't offer much of a challenge to the other contestants - Albus shouts:

"I volunteer in place of my sister, Ariana!"


	2. Elphias' Words

The crowd turned around to look at the auburn-haired teenager who volunteered. Elphias Doge looked pale and as if in disbelief. 

Arianna Dumbledore was known as an innocent and kind girl to the people in the district. But they never held any hope that she would survive the Hunger Games.

Albus saw Aberforth who had run to gather Ariana back into his body, shielding her from the world as if they would take her away 

Aberforth turned to look around, possibly to search for him but Albus suddenly turned. He didn't want to see his brother's eyes and what emotion they held, whether they were worried or satisfied that Albus would be the one gone. Rather Albus be gone than Ariana. Albus knew he himself was a coward regardless of all his knowledge and people's expectations of him, a fact nobody seemed to get except for his brother.

Albus was stunned after he had volunteered his name. He had already resigned himself that someone he knew would die. But when Ariana's name was called and he saw Aberforth, his brother who was never as gifted as him, about to volunteer all his plans for after his birthday flew out of the window and he was driven by pure impulse to shout to volunteer.

"Better you than me, Albus," one of his fellow-age clapped him on the shoulders, trying to sound comforting but Albus could detect the relief in his voice. He meant it. Better Albus than he.

"At least with you, our district will finally have a chance of winning. You're our best shot for a few decades now. If you win the entire district benefits. Think of that."

Albus could not think of anything, about their well-wishes. All his plans, his years spent on educating himself, acquiring books in a town where they were hard to come by, and resorting to smuggling them in like rats, and the money! The money spent bribing a visiting official to reveal to Albus the examination process for immigration. It would have been enough for a few months' worth of potions for Ariana.

They were all for naught. All useless if he were just to die in the middle of a deserted forest or in the field of the Cornucopia were many contestants had met their ends. Life and glory snuffed out. Dying before he could fulfill his potential.

Their well-wishes tasted bitter as ash in Albus' mouth.

But he had ingrained in himself to never show his upset in front of the crowd, even before his own family and friends. He had to when he wanted the town to look past the reputation his father had left. Nobody would want to do business with the ill-behaved son of a criminal so Albus was used in putting up a front and putting on airs as the capable and responsible older brother.

Elphias took him aside afterwards, knowing the crowd's words were not improving his friend's mood.

“Albus, my friend, please snap out of it,” Elphias said. “There's some good from this. From among the contestants so far you may think of me as biased for being your friend but believe me - you have a good shot in this.”

“I've heard about the other contestants and although the career champions would be troublesome but I know from living with you my whole life that even they would have trouble going against you.”

“But I'm digressing. Albus, you're someone who should have been born in district 1 or heck, I'm being arrogant, but maybe the capital.”

“Just think, if you win this you can finally give the life you want for Abe and Arianna.”

“I'll try to pass the immigration exam to get out of here and come to district 1 or the capital if I can to cheer you on.”

Now Albus smiled. That was a fanciable wish. But he took Elphia’s encouragement as it was. 

"You'll need some guide," Albus finally said even though he still hadn’t gotten over that his life was basically forfeited to the Games in the likelihood. 

“Elphias, you have been a good friend to me. And this would be useless to me now.” If he won he could get access to the other districts as a prize and if he lost -well. “There are some booklets in my room, just tell Abe I gave them to you. Those are notes for the immigration exam.”

Elphias looked at him a bit surprised. Reviewers were difficult to find and were expensive. These were treasures and tickets for one’s better life and prospects. 

“I promise I will pay you back someday Albus for all the generosity you and your family have shown me.”

“Kendra would be proud of you.” 

Nothing was said of Albus’ father. A person’s name, once blackened by the Capital, was not something to be said and even with the two of them alone for now but with a crowd not far away nobody could know who would be listening in. 


End file.
